What are your brushes?

[Jeff10236]

I have two, both cheap pure badger brushes.

I just started doing shave soaps right a bit over a month ago (I have had shave soaps for years, but I would just hand lather them, not real "hand lathering" but rub between my hands, get a little lather on my hands, put it on my face and get to it with a cartridge or wet/dry electric). When I bought my first brush it was a brush/stand combo from Miusco. My only guidance was from Amazon reviews, and it had decent reviews. Shipping was taking too long though and I got impatient once my mug arrived and I ordered a Perfecto brush (which came a few days before the Miusco) figuring I'd just rotate them to let them fully dry and increase longevity.

I hate the Miusco. It is scratchy, and it still sheds quite a bit every shave. I do use it every 3 shaves or so though to let my Perfecto dry fully and give it a break, and to see if the Miusco will eventually break in (I will probably get rid of it once I get other brushes).

From searching this and other forums I know that the Perfecto doesn't seem to get much love, but for an inexpensive brush, I'm pretty happy with mine. It lathers well, it is comfortable on my face, and it stopped shedding after my 2nd or 3rd use. Though, I recognize that it is possible that I may be happy with it only because I haven't tried anything better yet.

So, I have had my eye on brushes for a couple weeks. I have ordered a RazoRock Plisson synthetic Big Bruce brush. I'm also looking for a boar, and thinking about one of the Omega or Semogue brushes for now.

I know that some of you have drawers full of brushes, but I don't really want a list of everything you own if you are a collector. I'm more interested to hear what are everyone's favorites. The two or three go to brushes that you use the most. Especially "budget" brushes (preferably $25-30, but certainly no more than $60). What are your go to brushes and why?

 

[BSAGuy]

Semogue 620

L'Occitane Cade Plisson synthetic

Semogue has great backbone and nice soft tips. L'Occitane is typical synthetic. It's nice and soft, but less backbone.

I use the Semogue most of the time.

 

[eezee]

I rotate around 9 or 10 brushes and I like them all. The ones I could not give up are:

Badger
H.L. Thater 4376/3 Silver Tip
Simpson Duke #2 in Best Badger

Horse
Vie-Long 12705
Vie-Long 13052
Vie-Long 14080

Synthetic
Muhle 21H 220 Rytmo
Plisson pour L'Occitane

 

[Tokyospike]

I have exactly one (started wet shaving 6 months ago).

Semogue 620

Very happy.

 

[miguel]

Vulfix Old Original 1000A pure Badger brush, it can feel a little scratchy but is excellent with a few days whisker growth.

Omega Professional Boar 10049 large stiff boar brush. sometime you need a sledge hammer.

Stirling Soap Co. Finest Badger Fan Knot. excellent brush for face lathering, handle feels a bit clubby in the hand though.

 

[JBO667]

I have 3 currently after my starter VDH badger self un-knotting and a generous PIF received yesterday.

I did enjoy the VDH badger. I probably am to blame for it as I hot soaked it every shave and shower head shave as well. It she'd a bit but was soft and lathered thick. It will be re-glued into a vintage Everready soon. They are under $20 at Walmart and Target.

Next I ordered a Henry Cavendish pure badger off Amazon. I like it a lot. It is small in comparison to many other brushes but is a soft brush with a little bit of scritch and decent backbone. Good looking too in jet black and mostly black bristles. Well under $20 as well.

At the recommendation of others on here I went and got a VDH boar brush. It sheds often but has great backbone and lathers great on my head or in a bowl.

I received a PIF Razorock Monster yesterday. I haven't shaved with it yet, but I did whip up a MONSTER bowl of lather and am greatly looking forward to using it later! Soft and a tad springy.

 

[Acmemfg]

Best of the lot (and I have a LOT) are Rudy Vey and Paladin. Period.

On the budget side...Omega 11126, Semogue 2015 HD.
It all rather gets muddy after that

 

[shave/brush]

Right now my favorites are for bowl-lathering is a Whipped Dog synthetic 24mm knot and for face-lathering it is a Muhle STF 25mm knot.



The Fine Stout brush is also very good for face-lathering.

 

[sydbarett]

In the given price range, my favorites would be the Semogue SOC (Boar) and the Fine 24mm (synthetic). If you could stretch it to $40, the WD High mountain (badger) is a fantastic brush for the price.

 

[mlb0926ad]

I love my Maggard Synthetic, Semogue 620, and Parker brushes for that price point

 

[bakerbarber]

For the money, I enjoy some of the artisan made brushes that I have the most.

Custom brushes. Custom handles. Even the brushes that I restored myself with new knots.

Rudy Vey is a great place to start.

I've been really enjoying the two band finest knots from The Golden Nib website. Also have gotten a few very nice knots from eBay from China. They don't get here so quick but they are priced lower.

For the price, if you can handle gluing two things together (a knot and a handle) it's hard to beat a good Ace shaving or Frank Shave knot. TGN Finest is great and I've got a Virginia Sheng one that's good also.

For a ready-made brush Maggard Razors has a little two band brush with an aluminum handle. Stirling Soap Co sells a few that are excellent and a little bit larger in size. Italian Barber has a Razorock brand of brushes that many people have and give good reviews.

The thing is that everyone has different preferences. So you can get a brush that you may not like when another guy is going to gush over it.

It's hard to know what you prefer too without trying a bunch of stuff. That's not feasible.

A great brush that I have not seen any real complaints about is the Whipped Dog brush. Larry will help you pick out the best knot and handle if you ask him. Just tell him what you have, what you do and don't like about that, and also what you want. He'll hook you up and not break the bank in the process.

All the best.

Good luck.

Hope you check back in and tell us what you decide to buy.

 

[adamchur]

My favourite is an Unbranded Wood Handled Chinese Horsehair - a bargain at only €3,75 at auction on eBay with free shipping from China to Spain
It didn't smell too bad when new and only took a quick wash with baby shampoo and a good rinse with hot water and it was defunked
It's got good backbone and yet it feels kitten soft. It works best in a painting motion, but it's also perfectly ok to use a swirling motion too
Either way it explodes with lather - after 12 months the handle is still as good as new and the knot is nice and soft
I use all 4 of my brushes in turn, but I always enjoy using this one the most
Very easy to load, very easy to lather
View attachment 722039

My 2nd brush of choice is a Vie Long 4101 Professional which I bought from a Spanish seller on eBay for about €13 with free shipping
I wanted a Vie Long Horsehair, but also wanted to try out a Boar brush, so I settled on the 4101 to tick both boxes
The 4101 is a mix of 60% Boar and 40% White Horsehair - it was as stiff as a yard broom when it was new and stank like a wet dog
It took a good wash with baby shampoo and TEN test lathers with a Derby stick to defunk it
It works best in a painting motion, but still felt scritchy for a few weeks
Now, 6 months down the line the tips of the bristles have softened enough to do a few swirls before finishing off with a painting motion
Loads even the hardest soap very easily and produces an explosion of lather - the 2 tone handle looks cool too


The rest in no particular order......

Chinese Synthetic Silvertip - less than €6 on eBay with free shipping from China to Spain
No need to soak, just a quick dip in hot water, a good squeeze and a quick shake and it's good to go
I use it mainly for face lathering with Proraso Soaps, but it's also good for bowl lathering with creams
It's got some backbone, but it also feels kitten soft on my face - if I didn't know it was synthetic, I'd never realise that it wasn't badger
View attachment 722042

Unbranded Dark Badger - less than €10 including shipping from England to Spain
This was my first brush 2 years ago, it's perfectly adequate and does the job well, but if I had it all to do again, I'd have bought the Chinese Horsehair instead

 

[CigarSmoka]

I've made all my current brushes with the exception of a reknotted EJ. My favorite so far is a 24mm finest badger from Shave Revolution. The knot is worth far more than what I paid for it. Too bad they went out of business.

 

[Jeff10236]

I still want to hear everyone's opinions. This is definitely not my final purchase, but in addition to the RR Big Bruce I'm waiting on, I ordered a Semogue Excelsior 830 on Amazon today. I wanted a Boar and now I'll have one boar, one synthetic, and one badger to choose from (2 badgers if I don't get rid of the Miusco). I do hear a lot of good things about Parker brushes for the price and for Whipped Dog so I suspect they'll be my next (even if I love the Big Bruce and Semogue enough to never want to replace them or add to them and I keep them my only boar and synthetic, I'll definitely want to try a higher grade badger before long)

 

[realdog4]

I just bought a Semogue 620. I enjoy the brush. It works really well.

I also bought an Omega 11137. The loft is high but it feels closer to my badgers. It is more stiff than the 620.

Both of the above are boar brushes.

Even though I prefer the Omega, I would recommend you buy the Semogue 620 for a first brush.

It is soft, forgiving and creates a storm of lather. I think you will like the size as well. The loft is similar to a badger.

Edit - I just noticed you you purchased a 830. I think you will really like the brush.

Don't get SBAD (Shaving Brush Acquisition Disorder).

Save up and get yourself a Simpson or another brand of that caliber. You can get great deals on used items in this forum. Unlike Ebay, no one here will sell you a subpar item.

 

[muzichead]

My favorite is a Whipped Dog 24 Silver Tip. Silky soft tips and great backbone. The knot is set 20mm deep.

Whipped Dog 24 Synthetic. Brush has a great overall feel.

Omega Midget w/ TGN 20 3 Band Nylon. This brush originally had a mixed badger / boar combo in it, but I felt it was too stiff and scritchy. This is a much better knot for this handle now. Very small and compact but still very usable.

 

[Graybeard57]

All are Omega boars:

'49
B&B LE green
B&B LE pink

Using the '49 now, and loving it.

 

[Maven454]

Omega B&B 10th Anniversary - boar.
Vie Long Lord Randal - horse.

 

[Raven Koenes]

I own three Semogue boars 610, 620, and 830. I have two Omega boars the 10065 and New Bigger Bambino. For Badgers I own an EJ Medium Badger in Super, a Whipped Dog High Mountain Badger, and a TGN High Mountain White. I tend to use my boars more often.

 

[greatblackowl]

First post ever! My first brush is a Razorock Plissoft Disruptor (22m synthetic) and recently got a Semogue 1250 (still breaking in-- did its 17th lather this morning, and it is now able to compete with the Plissoft in terms of lather generation).